The Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing (EESSH) aims to improve the energy efficiency of social housing in Scotland. The tenants' guide outlines what landlords might do to achieve the new standard and how tenants can play their part.

In the 'before' image the red and yellow colours indicate heat
loss. In the 'after' image the green colour indicates the heat loss
is no longer a feature.

What is the
EESSH?

The
EESSH
sets the minimum energy efficiency standard for social housing. It
has been developed by the Scottish Government following
consultation with social landlords and tenants. Landlords must
ensure that all social housing meets this new standard by December
2020.

The new standard is based on minimum energy efficiency (
EE) ratings. These are
found on Energy Performance Certificates (
EPCs). If
you are unfamiliar with
EPCs, you
will find this
example useful. The
ratings which social homes will be expected to meet are shown in
the table below. The rating which applies to your home will depend
on the type of fuel you use to heat your home.

EE Rating (SAP 2009)

Dwelling type

Gas

Electric

Flats

69

65

Four-in-a-block

65

65

Houses

69

65

Detached

60

60

Other fuels - SHQS
requirements.

For example, if your home is a flat heated by a gas boiler then
it will be expected to achieve a minimum energy efficiency rating
of 69 by 2020.

Why do we need the
EESSH?

The Scottish Government recognises that all tenants want to live
in good quality, warm, low carbon homes. Improved energy efficiency
has a major part to play in achieving this goal. The
EESSH
is part of the wider Sustainable Housing Strategy published earlier
this year which also commits to develop proposals for minimum
energy efficiency standards in private sector houses. The new
standard is also intended to help meet Scotland's Climate Change
targets and to help protect tenants from the impacts of fuel
poverty. A background document explaining
EESSH
can be downloaded here.

What about the Scottish Housing Quality Standard (
SHQS)?

Social landlords are already working towards meeting the
requirements of the Scottish Housing Quality Standard (
SHQS).
This means that many properties will already be, or be well on the
way, to meeting the requirements of the
EESSH.

How will tenants benefit from
EESSH?

EESSH
should help make your home warmer and make heating your home more
affordable. Estimates suggest that this could mean a reduction in
energy costs for tenants across Scotland in the region of
£127m each year. It will also mean less
CO2 emissions that will
help to contribute toward dealing with climate change.

How will the
EESSH
be paid for?

A wide range of funding is available for landlords to help to
pay for energy efficiency measures to meet the
EESSH.
More detail on these is available in the funding area of the
EESSH
website. Whilst it is at the discretion of social landlords to set
rent levels, it is not envisaged that the implementation of
EESSH
will result in increased rents. It is however recognised that the
wider context of the
UK Government's welfare
changes and their possible impact on rents in the social housing
sector poses a challenge for social landlords.

What does my landlord need to do now?

A range of energy efficiency measures which your landlord may
consider for installation in your home are outlined in the diagram
below. It provides a clear illustration of how these measures can
result in potential energy and carbon savings. It is not a
prescriptive list and it is for landlords to decide on the right
measures for each property. The installation of these or other
energy efficiency measures should result in improved energy
efficiency and lessen carbon emission levels in your home.

This diagram shows potential energy and carbon savings per year
attributable to each measure, these are based on a 3 bed
semi-detached home:

You will find details of average cash savings which can be
achieved by installing some of these measures on the
Greener
Scotland website.

What do I need to do now?

Your landlord will contact you before any action is taken to
improve the energy efficiency of your home. You may also already
have an
EPC and
this can be a good place to start to understand what work may be
needed for your home.

It is important that you support your landlord's efforts to
improve your home. This may mean a short period of inconvenience to
you if your landlord needs to do any work to your home.

The way you choose to manage your energy use will also impact on
the achievable energy savings. By making simple changes to the way
you behave in your home you can make a big impact on energy use.
You can make a difference by:

turning down the thermostat to between 18 and 21
degrees;

reducing the hours your heating is on;

turning down your hot water thermostat to a maximum of 60
degrees;

buying energy efficient appliances such as light bulbs,
TVs and other products when
they need to be replaced;

washing clothes at low temperatures;

reducing, reusing and recycling.

Where can I get further information about the
EESSH
and energy efficiency?

If you wish to discuss any aspects of the
EESSH
you should first contact your landlord through the usual channels
by telephone, email or in writing.You can access further advice by
calling the Greener Scotland Advice line 0808 808 2442 or visiting
www.greenerscotland.org